Community Kit for Cardivoscular Health

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This project will develop prototypes of health materials for a Community Kit for Cardiovascular Health that is congruent with the unique culture of Appalachia, a region where one in 12 Americans lives. There is evidence of excessively high patterns of cardiovascular disease in the region. Appalachia lacks culturally appropriate materials for cardiovascular risk prevention. The firm seeks to develop a culturally congruent kit that uses the focal role of women in the Appalachian family as the access point. To test this approach's feasibility, the firm will develop materials that use appropriate images and messages to empower women to prevent risk behaviors among their offspring. Staff will conduct focus groups to understand how Appalachians react to cardiovascular risk prevention. Based on findings, staff will develop prototypes of materials. Concurrently, staff will develop an instrument to evaluate materials and pretest this instrument to address issues of reliability and validity. By means of a survey, staff will determine whether women understand messages, accept them, and feel motivated. Toborg Associates will document its research and recommendations in a monograph.